Star-Ledger file photoA PATH train sits at Journal Square station in Jersey City in this file photo. The base PATH fare would increase from $1.75 to $2.75 under a proposed fare hike.

Seeking billions in new revenues, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey today proposed a series of steep hikes that would increase bridge and tunnel tolls by 50 percent or more — and much more for those paying cash.

PATH fares would go up by $1.

The first increases could take effect as soon as next month, with a second phase in 2014.

The Port Authority last raised tolls in 2008, when a 33-percent increase brought the cost of crossing its six bridges and tunnels to $8.

Under the proposal, tolls for cars using E-ZPass would jump by $4 — one of the largest increases in memory — raising the cost from $6 to $10 for off-peak travel and from $8 to $12 in peak hours. An additional $2 increase during peak and off-peak hours would be implemented in 2014.

Motorists paying by cash would be even harder hit, with an additional surcharge of $3, increasing the cash rate from $8 to $15 this year. That surcharge would increase by an additional $2 in 2014.

For trucks using E-ZPass during off-peak hours, tolls would go from $7 to $13 per axle and from $8 to $14 during peak hours, with an additional $2 per axle increase in 2014 for both off-peak and peak periods.

A similar cash surcharge of $3 per axle would be applied to trucks this year with another $2 per axle hike in 2014.

The increases would apply to all of the bi-state agency’s bridge and tunnel crossings, which include the George Washington Bridge, the Lincoln and Holland tunnels, and the Bayonne and Goethals bridges and the Outerbridge Crossing between New Jersey and Staten Island.

Under the proposal, PATH fares would climb as well — from $1.75 to $2.75 this year, while preserving a 25 percent discount for multi-trip users. The 30-day unlimited pass will increase to $89 from $54.

The proposal is subject to approval by the Port Authority’s board of commissioners, which will meet Aug. 19. If the board approves the plan, it is subject to veto within 10 days by either Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York or Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, authority spokesman Steve Coleman said.

The Port Authority said the higher fares and tolls were forced by sharply decreased revenues caused by the ongoing economic recession, increases in post-9/11 security costs and the rebuilding at the World Trade Center site, and the need to fund billions in new infrastructure projects — ranging from raising the Bayonne Bridge to replacing the Lincoln Tunnel Helix.

Reaction from some quarters was angry and swift.

U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) called it an "outrageous proposal" that was unacceptable even if cut by half.

"It’s yet another assault on New Jersey’s commuters," he said. "These increases are disproportionately punitive to New Jersey residents and fundamentally unfair."

Lautenberg said the steep increase in PATH fares was especially problematic at a time when there is a need to get more people out of cars and onto mass transit.

"These proposed PATH fare hikes add insult to injury," he said.

Steve Carrellas, a New Jersey delegate to the National Motorists Association, called the proposals "unbelievable," and "insane in this economic environment."

In a joint statement, Christie and Cuomo said that while the Port Authority is facing financial issues, so are families in the states of New Jersey and New York.

"The answer cannot always be an indiscriminate and exorbitant increase in the cost to the taxpayer, or in this case, toll payer," the statement from the governors said. "As families must carefully and effectively manage their finances at this difficult time, so must government."

Christie and Cuomo had been briefed on the proposals months ago.

This year’s increase will mean $720 million in additional annual revenue. The second step of increases would add another $290 million annually for each full toll year, Port Authority official said.

Paul Steely White, executive director of Transportation Alternatives, said the increases were a "tough but necessary step" to get the region’s infrastructure back in good repair.

"These fees — a significant source of the Authority’s revenue — are crucial to the upkeep of the rails, bridges and ports that New Yorkers rely on every day," he said.

Nine public hearings on the proposals will be held across both states, all on the same day — Aug. 16.

PORT AUTHORITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN

The Port Authority said the tolls are to go toward a new $33 billion, 10-year capital plan that would include:

• Replacing 592 "suspender ropes" on the George Washington Bridge.
• Replacing the Lincoln Tunnel Helix, a spiraling approach to the New Jersey entrance.
• Raising the Bayonne Bridge to end a problem with ships that are too tall to go underneath it.
• Building a new bus garage at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan.
• Installing barriers and other security devices at the region's airports.
• Replacing 340 PATH cars and upgrading PATH security.